NPR will receive $1.9 million to help with its news work, including filling 11 new positions.
The money is a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting “to help further strengthen its editorial operations and meet the challenges of producing 24/7 news content on multiple platforms that consistently adheres to the highest standards of editorial integrity — accuracy, fairness, balance, objectivity and transparency, and the obligation to include diverse viewpoints.”
The positions to be filled include seven editors that CPB said will provide a “backstop” and additional journalistic review step before content is distributed; two supervising editors to NPR’s editorial standards and practices team to provide guidance on editorial ethics and policies; and two content strategy analysts to provide data around the mix of content being produced and its impact.
CPB said the grant is intended to help NPR “be more transparent and engage with its audiences more frequently regarding its content decision-making,” work more closely with member stations and hold regular editorial briefings with newsmakers and experts in their fields.
Though not mentioned in the announcement, NPR most recently was at the center of controversy in media and political circles in April when an editor, Uri Berliner, wrote critically about the organization’s internal workings and “absence of viewpoint diversity.” He later resigned.
